The Red Era: Living in Seclusion in a Siheyuan as a Boss

Chapter 810: "Liu's Overseas Oil" Contributes to National Development!!!
Wang Yudong's notebook is filled with detailed records of every aspect of the project's operation: from adjusting drilling parameters to scheduling local workers, from equipment maintenance plans to key communication points with government departments.

He often tells his team members, "Overseas projects are like a game of chess; you have to think ten steps ahead before making a move."

This proactive approach has enabled Liu's Overseas Oil Company to maintain efficient operation of its exploration projects in Mexico.

During the rainy season in the African country of Congo, Chen Dahai led his team to repair mining equipment in the rain.

Rainwater streamed down the brim of his safety helmet, soaking his work clothes, but he remained focused on guiding the technicians in debugging the newly installed flotation machine.

“Precise the parameters by another 0.5 points,” he shouted into the walkie-talkie, “We need to ensure that the recovery rate increases by another 2 percentage points.” This extreme pursuit of technical details has enabled Liu’s Mining to consistently lead the industry in copper and cobalt recovery rates.

Meanwhile, in the Buchuk mining area of ​​Kyrgyzstan, Zhang Yongjiang is organizing a special skills competition.

He innovatively introduced the traditional Chinese "mentor-apprentice" model into overseas projects, pairing local employees with Chinese technical experts.

“We want to keep the technology in the local area,” Zhang Yongjiang said at the opening ceremony. “That’s true win-win.” This talent training model has not only improved the project’s operational efficiency but has also won high praise from the local government.

At a nickel mine project in Indonesia, technical director Li Yan is leading his team to overcome the challenges of smelting under high temperature and pressure. He spends 72 consecutive hours in the control room, his eyes bloodshot but his gaze fixed on the fluctuating data on the instrument panel. "Lower the reduction temperature by another 15 degrees Celsius," he commands in a hoarse voice, "and be careful to maintain stable pressure inside the furnace." This almost obsessive meticulousness has enabled Liu's Mining to successfully reduce energy consumption by 18% with its pioneering "low-temperature reduction method."

Meanwhile, at a uranium mining project in Kazakhstan, safety director Zhou Minghua is organizing a monthly emergency drill.

He deliberately chose to simulate a pipeline rupture in extremely cold weather of -20 degrees Celsius. "There are no shortcuts to safety," he told the local staff while recording the drill time. "Every drill is a guarantee of life." This iron discipline has enabled the project to maintain a "zero accident" record for three consecutive years.

At the copper mine camp in Chile, South America, CFO Lin Xiaowen had just finished negotiations with the local tax authorities.

She worked through the night to compile a two-hundred-page bilingual report, using data to persuade the other party to accept the new tax calculation plan.

"Professionalism is a universal language," she shared her experience at the morning meeting, "but it's even more important to learn to think in the other person's way."

These lights, scattered around the world, not only illuminate the nights in the mining areas, but also connect a technological link across mountains and seas.

Every year on the project's anniversary, employees from different countries would spontaneously sing a modified version of "The Prospector's Song".

"Our footprints have covered five continents, but our hearts remain on this land."

The stories of these overseas builders are unfolding simultaneously at project sites in more than a dozen countries around the world for the "Liu's Mining Group".

With their professionalism and dedication, they are demonstrating the responsibility and commitment of Southeast University enterprises in a foreign land.

As night falls, the lights of the project camp shine like brilliant stars, illuminating the journey of these builders as they pursue their dreams.

In recent years, while maintaining its advantages in the traditional non-ferrous metals sector, "Liu's Mining Group" has continued to expand its business scope.

The Liu Group not only continues to develop and utilize non-ferrous metal mineral resources such as iron, copper, gold, silver, and nickel, but also sets its strategic focus on the energy sector, actively developing energy industries such as coal, oil, and natural gas, thus forming a new pattern of diversified development.

These measures fully demonstrate the Liu Group's strategic vision in the resource sector and its forward-looking industrial layout.

Five years ago, Liu's Overseas Oil Group, a subsidiary of Liu's Mining Group, spent a whopping $25 billion to acquire the exclusive mining rights to the Kashagan oil field in Kazakhstan, which was met with merciless ridicule and mockery from Western media.

The saying that "Dongda people will definitely lose everything this time" was once rampant, and people felt that this was just another manifestation of the misconception that "stupid people are rich".

However, a few years later, the total investment of "Liu's Overseas Oil Group" in the Kashagan oil field had exceeded 300 billion US dollars, which is equivalent to more than 2000 billion RMB.

Those Western capitalists who stood by and watched back then are now filled with deep regret.

In the late 1980s, geologists known as "Polar Bears" discovered this resource-rich land in the vast Kazakh desert.

After comprehensive geological surveys, experts believe that the Kashagan oil field is a geological treasure trove, with estimated oil reserves of about 350 billion barrels and associated natural gas reserves of more than 1 trillion cubic meters. Theoretically, the daily production could reach about 150 million barrels.

Based solely on the value of its underground resources, the figure alone exceeds several hundred billion US dollars.

However, the timing of finding this "sea of ​​black gold" was somewhat regrettable.

At that time, the "Polar Bear" was already declining in national strength and lacked sufficient technological reserves, making it unable to cope with the development of large oil fields in such a complex environment.

After the "Polar Bear" brothers split up, the Kashagan oil field became Kazakhstan's "heritage," and its future began to enter the international arena.

At that time, Western energy giants such as Norwegian National Oil Company, BP, and ExxonMobil took action, vying to inject funds and exploration resources.

Their goals are clear: everyone wants to control this massive reserve that could revolutionize the global energy landscape.

Because capital seeks to maximize profits, a fierce battle for control of Kashagan ensued.

Western companies, with their strong financial resources, quickly seized a share of the early-stage development of oil fields.

I thought this hard-won wealth would be so easy to obtain, but in reality, it hides a severe test bestowed by nature.

The Kashagan oil fields are located northeast of the Caspian Sea and are dominated by the continental climate there.

In summer, it is unbearably hot, with the ground temperature often exceeding 50 degrees Celsius; in winter, it is extremely cold, with the temperature dropping sharply to minus 40 degrees Celsius, making it a place that people both love and hate.

What's even more challenging is the unpredictable Caspian Sea itself, with its howling winds, surging waves, and thick ice floes in winter, making work at sea incredibly difficult.

When Western companies actually set foot in the Kashagan oil fields, they immediately realized that traditional mining methods were unsustainable in this place dominated by natural laws.

With only about five months of "window period" throughout the year to barely operate, the effective production time is severely insufficient, and the high cost of equipment maintenance makes it even more difficult to achieve profits.

The harsh natural environment is like an invisible shackle binding this treasure.

The development of the Kashagan oil field is proving far more difficult than expected.

The oil layer is buried in an ultra-deep stratum below 4000 meters, with pressures as high as 800 atmospheres and hydrogen sulfide content reaching lethal levels.

The traditional mining techniques initially used by Western companies repeatedly failed here, with drilling platforms experiencing frequent blowouts and equipment corrosion occurring three times faster than expected.

"This is like extracting oil in hell," a Western engineer remarked before evacuating.

As development costs continued to rise, the original consortium members withdrew one after another, and the project came to a standstill.

Faced with the harsh natural environment and enormous technical challenges of the Kashagan oil field, the Western consortium was initially quite confident, relying on its financial and technological advantages to do well. However, reality gave them a harsh slap in the face.

The Norwegian national oil company was the first to sense the pressure, only realizing after investing heavily that the complexity of the oil field and its operating costs far exceeded their expectations. Limited operating hours resulted in very low equipment utilization, while long periods of non-operation required significant expenditures on antifreeze, corrosion protection, and maintenance.

After years of effort, the Norwegians finally had to give up and sell their shares, thus exiting the market.

BP also failed to find a solution. Although they had considerable experience in the harsh waters of the North Sea, the unique ice conditions and more extreme temperature differences in the Caspian Sea made their old methods unusable.

With the economic situation remaining unfavorable, BP, like Norwegian Petroleum, decided to cut its losses and exit the market.

Although ExxonMobil of America held on for longer, it could no longer sustain itself as its allies withdrew their investments. So it tried to sell its shares to its Indian counterpart, hoping to recoup some of its losses by taking advantage of the Indian company.

At this delicate moment, Kazakhstan demonstrated its commitment to energy sovereignty by exercising its right of first refusal and buying back the shares at a low price, intending to resell them to other buyers.

However, seeing the major oil companies suffer setbacks in the Kashagan oil field, other oil groups shook their heads and dared not jump into this "quagmire".

Just as Western giants were withdrawing their investments, "Liu's Mining Group" deliberately jumped into the trap, drawing ridicule from Western capital.

Liu Zhenbang, chairman of the Liu's Mining Group, personally led a team to Kazakhstan to conduct three months of arduous negotiations.

At the negotiating table, Liu Zhenbang made a resounding promise: "We will not only bring funds, but also the ultra-deep well mining technology and polar operation experience unique to Dongda University."

At the signing ceremony, the Kazakh Energy Minister excitedly said, "This is a game-changing moment."

Kazakhstan sold the Kashagan oil field to "Liu's Overseas" oil company.

Liu's Overseas Oil Company spent US$25 billion to acquire full mining rights to the Kashagan oil field.

The announcement immediately caused an uproar in Western public opinion, with many comments, including doubts and ridicule.

Most Western media outlets consider Dongda University's investment in energy this time to be a "high-risk adventure," even jokingly saying that it was "spending a lot of money to buy a piece of useless permafrost."

It is clear that the setbacks encountered by these large Western companies, which appear to be technical problems, are actually a manifestation of a lack of comprehensive solutions.

They underestimated the systemic challenges of maintaining large-scale, continuous production in harsh environments.

Liu Zhenbang, the head of the "Liu's Mining Group," is not only focused on the vast hidden resources, but also sees them as an important bargaining chip to safeguard the country's energy security and expand strategic depth.

Those assets that outsiders consider "hot potatoes" may become key opportunities for Liu Zhenbang and the "Liu family" to solve the energy problem.

Faced with Western narratives and natural barriers, the engineers of "Liu's Overseas Oil Group" did not surrender. Instead, they used their strong technical capabilities to overcome all the doubts and give a resounding answer.

The key to solving the Kassagan problem is to ensure stable production throughout the year.

Faced with harsh sea conditions, Liu's Overseas Oil Company developed specialized equipment, designing a large, ice-resistant, and cold-resistant floating production storage and offloading platform and a jack-up drilling platform specifically for the Kashagan oil field.

These giant structures are like steel fortresses at sea, capable of withstanding the raging waves of the Caspian Sea and the onslaught of thick ice floes in winter.

After the "Liu's Petroleum" team arrived in Kashagan, they immediately launched a technological revolution: they adopted modular construction to shorten the construction period by 40%, used digital twin technology to achieve remote monitoring, and innovatively built a floating oil production platform in the Caspian Sea.

The core highlight is the temperature control system independently developed by "Liu's Overseas Petroleum". In winter, the powerful insulation equipment ensures that the equipment can still work normally in the extreme cold of minus 40 degrees Celsius.
In the summer, the enclosed cabins create a safe and comfortable working environment for the workers, completely eliminating the problem of being exposed to the sun outdoors.

This group of specialized vessels forms a floating factory, enabling an integrated operation process from oil extraction, preliminary processing, storage to export, miraculously extending the "golden period" of only 5 months per year to 365 days a year, achieving uninterrupted operation around the clock.

On the day the first test well went into production, daily crude oil production exceeded 3 barrels, setting a new record for single-well production in the oil field.

A continuous stream of crude oil gushed from the ground, representing immense wealth.

Suddenly, how to transfer these "treasures" back to Southeast University became a problem.

This is no challenge for the "hardworking," "courageous," "wise," and "decisive" students of Dongda University.

In terms of land transportation, the harsh conditions of the Gobi Desert also pose a major challenge.

To address this challenge, East Kazakhstan collaborated with Kazakhstan to build an energy artery, namely the East Kazakhstan crude oil pipeline.

This transnational pipeline is like a giant steel dragon, spanning thousands of kilometers of desert and permafrost regions; it is truly magnificent.

Engineers from the "Liu's Infrastructure Group" of Southeast University withstood the material stress caused by the huge temperature difference between day and night and successfully solved the problems of sandstorm erosion and construction in permafrost.

Once the pipeline is completed, crude oil from Kasagan can be delivered directly to refineries in the eastern and western parts of the country in a continuous, reliable and efficient manner, avoiding the Malacca Strait dilemma in traditional sea transport and greatly reducing transportation risks and costs.

It can be felt that the highlight of the "Liu's" plan lies in its ingenious integration of the wisdom of international cooperation. "Liu's Overseas Oil" is not simply taking over, but as a key shareholder of the Kashagan project, it is deeply involved in the operational decision-making of the joint operation company.

With the strong capabilities of "Liu's Overseas Petroleum" in supply chain management and cost control, as well as the large number of highly qualified engineering teams of "Liu's Infrastructure", the overall operational efficiency and economic benefits of the project have been significantly improved.

The powerful transformation of technology resulted in staggering production figures, with the oil field's output reaching nearly 900 million tons in the second year.

By the first half of last year, the production of oil and gas equivalent had already exceeded 1500 million tons.

By early July 2002, the cumulative oil production of the Kashagan oil field had exceeded 1 billion barrels.

The first phase of the project currently has a stable production capacity, with an annual crude oil production of 2000 million tons and a natural gas production of 150 billion cubic meters.

The second and third phases of the production enhancement projects, as well as the development plan for the North Caspian New Area, are progressing steadily.

The success of "Liu's Overseas Oil" in Kashagan is no accident. It is like a key piece of the puzzle, integrated into the overall strategy of Dongda University to build a diversified and resilient energy security network.

This land-based energy corridor not only cleverly mitigates the geopolitical risks and the "Malaysia Six Dilemma" that traditional sea routes may encounter, but also adds a solid energy security guarantee to the large ship of Eastern Taiwan's economy.

The continuous oil supply from the Kashagan oil field provides a constant source of power for the Dongda industrial system.

The annual shipment of tens of millions of tons of crude oil is like opening up a "large overseas oil field" that can be exploited for decades for Dongda University, greatly alleviating concerns about over-reliance on foreign sources.

Liu's Overseas Oil Company's gamble back then resulted in the acquisition of the Kashagan oil field, which yielded incredible returns.

Those Western oil giants who withdrew their investments back then are now kicking themselves and want a piece of the pie.

However, they couldn't find a breakthrough when faced with the "Liu's Mining Group," which was also a mining giant.

(End of this chapter)